Many process streams exist that require advanced chemical treatment. These streams range from potable drinking water to industrial process streams. Many industrial process streams contain a multitude of soluble compounds that require treatment by some process. This can include pretreatment before discharge or treatment of sufficient quality to reuse the contaminated water. The soluble compounds include but are not limited to arsenic, nitrates, organics, compounds in potable water as well as a list of a multitude of compounds dissolved in industrial process waters. These contaminants and the variety of contaminants make the process streams difficult to treat with conventional techniques. Additionally, many process production streams require specialized equipment. A multitude of treatments and process systems have been designed to treat the various streams described above. These range from conventional chemical treatment processes to ion exchange to electro coagulation devices. These processes have been implemented in various streams with varying degrees of success. All processes additionally have inherent limitations.
The process that is disclosed and described herein is a physical/chemical treatment configuration that has been developed to treat waters that contain high organic loadings in addition to highly suspended and dissolved solids of a non-organic nature. These streams have various originations including, but not limited to, wash waters, produced waters, flow back waters, fracturing water and other streams generated in the production, refining, transportation and distribution of organic based products.
The process disclosed herein utilizes the unique properties of the “Agitated Liquid and Electrically Conductive Environment and an Electro Chemical Cell” described in application Ser. No. 12/915,478 along with chemical treatment to produce process streams that have significantly reduced levels of the above mentioned materials.
Many process have been developed that implement chemical treatment, chemical and physical treatment, and electrocoagulation to accomplish the removal of organic and other solids from aqueous solutions.